I was pleased with myself because I’d got everything done in time to get into the car a couple of minutes before the news began. That meant I could listen to the weather and the traffic reports too.

The news began the way it always did:  Here is the CBC news with Lorna Jackson but an unexpected silence followed. 

When she started up again, her voice sounded strange. Then she lapsed into silence again. She tried again: Good Morning, this is the CBC… but that’s as far as she got. Like she had something stuck in her throat. That’s what I hoped it was anyway, like she had a blockage and didn’t want to cough in public. She apologized and started again. She read a phrase: The returned government in Haiti… and then broke into tears. She was crying. Then she apologized twice in a row and paused again before continuing.

What might have happened? Was she going through a break-up? Had there been a death in the family? Was one of the news items especially sad? Are you depressed? 

I didn’t have any of the answers, but the connection felt very human. Suddenly you’re there, speaking. Not on the radio. Not a strange voice. A person, a human being. 

Copyright David Mibashan. Translated by Kit Maude.